In the oil, gas and chemical refinery industries, there is a requirement for insulation to be wrapped around pipes. The insulation serves to conserve energy by limiting heat exchange with the surrounding atmosphere. The insulation is traditionally held in place with jacketing which protects the insulation from deterioration, and metal bands placed approximately every twelve inches along the length of the insulated pipe. A particular installation may require a million or more feet of pipe to be insulated. As the pipe diameters and insulation thickness may vary, there is no standard band length which can be produced in advance. Rather, bands must be measured and cut on site to meet the requirements of the particular installation.
There is a need for an automated apparatus and method for measuring and cutting a desired length of steel band and attaching a wing type seal clip to the hand for use as a pipe insulation retaining band.
It is known to provide a machine for automatically securing a band around a box or other object to be banded. Such devices are described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,781,516 to Eisenberg “Eisenberg”, U.S. Pat. No. 3,120,171 to Hall et al “Hall” and U.S. Pat. No. 3,0491,962 to Workman “Workman”. Eisenberg teaches a machine which nails a metal band to a box, but does not attach a clip to the band, and does not automatically measure and cut bands for later application to an object. Hall teaches a hydraulic machine for repeatedly wrapping a band about a box and sealing the band to itself. Workman describes a machine which wraps a band about an object in a controlled manner which will optimize energy expenditure.
It is known to provide a machine for measuring and cutting a band to a desired length, using a programmable controller which controls a system of rollers to feed and eject band supply and cut it to a desired length. Such a device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,287,802 to Pearson “Pearson”. The device in Pearson does not attach a clip to one end of the band.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,146,847 to Lyon et al “Lyon” describes a band feed assembly which is capable of wrapping a band about an object using a drive wheel connected to a reversible drive motor. A controller permits control of the speed, direction, acceleration and tensioning of the band. Lyon does not attach a clip to the band.
It is known to provide a device for applying heat-sealable bands around objects including a programmable control system which receives signals from sensors in the machine to regulate the banding spelling cycle. An example of such a device is described in Canadian Patent No. 2,271,591 to Chak et al “Chak”. Chak does not teach a method and apparatus for attaching a clip to a band of a desired length.
European Patent Application No. 1,481,901 to Sickel's describes a method and control system for a banding machine which permits determination of a foreign object in proximity to the machine and starting and stopping of the banding cycle in response.
It is also known to provide a control mechanism for a feed and tension unit in a banding apparatus. Such a mechanism is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,782,679 to Helland et al “Helland”. In Helland, a desired length of band can be measured and cut, however, no clip is attachable to the measured band.